Available for the first time since a posthumous print of 1641! This is the only modern edition of sacred motets for two solo voices and organ from the significant English Catholic composer Peter Philips (1560/1-1628). The collection includes eleven motets for two sopranos, forty-one motets for soprano and tenor, and twenty-three for soprano and bass.

The texts include antiphons and responsories taken from throughout the liturgical year. Many Eucharistic and Marian-themed motets complete the collection, making it suitable for a variety of liturgical observances.

The edition was prepared from a complete set of 1628 partbooks located in the library of Christ Church, Oxford. The modern volume is in score format, with G and F clefs and an unrealized organ continuo part.

The note values of the original parts have been halved, as a concession to present-day performers. Philips supplied a treble line as well as a bass line for the continuo, thereby providing a clear framework as the basis for the organist to fill in harmony. A sample realization appears in the appendix.

The volume features a sturdy spiral binding which serves two purposes: it stays open on the music rack, and it facilitates easy reproduction at a xerographic machine. The purchaser of one copy is granted permission to make two additional copies for performance.

Included in the edition is a preface, as well as appendices with translations, suggestions for liturgical use, a sample continuo realization, and bibliography.

The new edition Peter Philips: 75 Motets is a welcome addition to a little-known genre, the accompanied small-scale motets of the early 17th century. Composers such as Peter Philips, Richard Dering, Felice Anerio and Giacomo Finetti set sacred texts for one to four solo voices with organ accompaniment. The motets embrace late Renaissance as well as early Baroque compositional traits, by combining occasional moments of imitative polyphony with expressive and florid solo passages. The novice continuo player can easily realize the simple harmonic language supporting the singers.